The disappearance of Katherine Beckett
by naybaybay
Summary: It's Monday morning and the bodies are piling up, but New York's best female detective cannot be found... Sounds dramatic, but it's pure fluff, I assure you :-


**Hey y'all. So usually I don't read established Caskett fics. But every single morning I wake up with this same idea in my head - a little bit fuzzy (as it is the morning), but it's been plaguing me, so finally I decided I needed to write it down. **

**No spoilers for anything really, just a bit of fluff! **

**DISCLAIMER: I own Castle as much as I own my cat... Cat owners will understand what I'm talking about here. For everyone else's benefit - NO, I DO NOT OWN CASTLE. **

**Enjoy!**

...

Ring ring.

Castle groaned against his pillow and then grimaced as his cheek came into contact with his own saliva that had fallen from his open mouth.

Yes, sometimes adults drool in their sleep, OK? He's not embarrassed about it, in fact, he views it as proof of a very deep and relaxing sleep.

Ring ring.

Oh yeah, the phone. Now where in the hell is it?

He waved a hand blindly in the air, propping himself up with his opposite elbow. It is so inconvenient for any person to be calling at this time of the morning, and if it's a call about a murder... ooh, it's probably that! OK, he's awake now.

But where's the bloody phone?

Ring ring.

Alright already! He extended his arm further out, found his pants in a crumpled heap on the floor beside him. He fished in the pocket and finally produced the obtrusive object.

Ring ri- "Castle".

"Hey yo Castle, it's Esposito."

Ah. Ochoa himself. "Oh hey man, what's up?" Castle asked half-heartedly, yawning at the same time.

"Bro, you seen or heard from Beckett lately?" Esposito's worried tone made Castle's breath hitch a little.

"Ah no. No not since Friday. Didn't Gates give her the weekend off?"

"Yeah man, but her cell's off and that is just not like her", the Latino detective's voice was heavy with concern.

"No, no it's definitely not like her at all. Maybe she's staying up at her Dad's cabin and there's no reception", Castle offered lightly.

"Well I sure hope not, cos it's Monday morning and I got a dead body on my hands."

"Dead body?" Castle's attention piqued.

"Yeah. Maybe I should ring her dad and ask him if he knows where she is", Esposito suggested.

Castle swallowed. "Oh man, hey, if you ring up looking for her, and she's NOT there, you're just going to cause the man to worry. God knows, the poor guy's had enough drama in his life... Look, why don't I give Jim a call and just, you know, seg-way Beckett's whereabouts somewhere into the conversation?"

"What so you're just going to call up Beckett's dad for a "chat"?" Esposito sounded dubious.

Castle shrugged, even though the man on the other end of the line could not see him. "Why not? We've chatted before. He knows I'm a friend of Kate's too, not just a colleague, I mean, I write about her... sorta, kinda... well anyway, I have an interest in her life outside of the precinct... Hey, I'll call with the pretense of gathering more info on her backstory, yeah that'll be the perfect cover!"

Esposito nodded his head, for which the same rule applied as Castle's shrug.

"Alright bro. Let me know, or better yet, if you find her, get her to call, or better yet still... get herself down here. Gates is bout to turn medieval man, I can see it in her eyes", Esposito finished dramatically.

Castle raised his eyebrows. "Do my best. Bye."

He disconnected the call and then pursed his lips. He'd experienced the wrath of Iron Gates and did not wish that upon anyone.

He'd better make a move on locating Beckett...

"Esposito's looking for you", he murmured out into the room.

A manicured hand stuck out beside him, pulling the sheets of her face, as a tuft of brown hair appeared above them.

"I gathered", Beckett's groggy voice told him. "Why is your phone on? I thought we agreed, no phones this weekend, I held up my end of the bargain", she turned and looked at him begrudgingly.

"As of midnight last night, the weekend was over", he told her simply.

She shook her head with a slight smirk. "I thought I heard angry-bird sound effects in the middle of the night."

"Never deny a man his birds", Castle told her seriously.

"Well, I guess if the weekend is over, then so are we, for another five days at least..." Beckett sighed.

Castle gave her a sad smile and threw his phone down, somewhere beside him, not really interested in it anymore. "We don't have to be", he traced her line of her bare shoulder blade with his index finger. "You can come over on school nights, you know", he leaned down to kiss her neck... her shoulder... the top of her chest... "You SHOULD come over on school nights, I'm fairly certain my mother will let you", he delved lower with his mouth and

Beckett let out a sigh that turned into a moan. "That _is_ a very enterprising idea Mr. Castle."

His hand gently stroked her stomach, causing her muscles to twitch beneath his fingers. "In fact, maybe I should come over every night", she said breathlessly, stroking his naked back with her soft hand.

Castle pulled away from his ministrations of her body and brought his hand from her stomach, up to cup her face. "Please do." He told her tenderly.

Beckett leaned forward and brought her mouth to his, quickly. They exhaled together, before withdrawing. "I guess I could tell my dad we're doing "homework"."

Castle nodded emphatically. "And that is exactly what this is... homework."

"Research", Beckett supplied, with a twinkle in her eye.

Castle beamed. "Research", he nodded in agreement.

Beckett sighed deeply as she leaned into him, resting her head on his gloriously smooth chest. "But today is a school day, and the bell has already rung."

Castle smoothed her hair down with his hand and then kissed the top of her head. "Well, you'd better not be tardy. Not with our principal being who she is."

Beckett chuckled as she lightly pushed herself off him and rose out of the bed, leaving him cold. Instantly, he groaned at her absence.

Beckett slipped her shirt on over her newly adorned bra and slid her feet into her skin-fit jeans.

Castle watched, mesmerized as she flicked her hair out of her shirt collar.

God he was enchanted. And his princess was coming back to his Castle, tonight, and then tomorrow night and perhaps every night.

"You're really coming back tonight?" He asked her, uncertainly, but hopefully.

Beckett paused in her appliance of lipgloss and clipped the lid on it before walking over to his bedside. She eyed him up and down until he shifted over, allowing her to sit beside him. "As long as you keep coming back. So will I, Castle."

He looked into her eyes, full of promise and love. She leaned into him, placing her hand on his pillow to hold herself up. He wrapped his arms around her small frame and kissed her passionately.

When she pulled away, she had an amused sort of frown of her face.

"What?" He asked her, his brow furrowed.

She wiped her hand down his chest. "You've been drooling again."

"Ooh, well you better wash that hand. Wouldn't wanna be caught out on a forensic-y technicality now, would we?" He gave her a smoldering look.

Beckett tilted her head to the side with a smile. "I don't know, I kind of like the thought of having your DNA on me."

Castle spluttered. "Well you'll just have to come back tonight and let me... replenish you."

Beckett leaned in close to him, her breath, hot on his neck. "I will... and I SO hope you're not talking about saliva."

Castle swallowed hard. "No, well... not JUST saliva", he grinned at her.

"Really though Castle, drooling? You're such a baby", Beckett sucked his earlobe seductively, proving to him at the same time, that he was also very much - a man.

"Yes, but I'm your baby", he told her happily.

"Mm", she quietly agreed. Pulling away, she gave him a wink and began to walk towards his bedroom door.

"Hey, I don't get a proper goodbye?" He complained indignantly.

Beckett rolled her eyes. "Wait until I'm half way across the room, why don't ya?"

Despite her annoyance, which was really only for show; she spun back on her heels and walked quickly over to Castle, placing both hands on either side of his face and giving him a kiss to shatter the earth. As soon as she heard Castle moan, she pulled away, cruelly. Again, she winked. "Tonight." She promised. She pecked his lips once more. "Bye baby."

Castle watched her walk the width of his bedroom until she reached the door. "Hey Kate", he called out to her softly.

"Yeees?" She asked without turning around, feigning annoyance again.

Castle grinned. "If I decide to come to school today, you want to meet me behind the bike sheds at say... one o'clock?"

That made Beckett turn around. "Richard Castle! Are you nuts? The principal will suspend us for sure. Not to mention the other kids... they'll have license to tease us for like...ever!"

Castle scoffed. "Who Ryan and Esposito? Come on, I know way worse about them, they wouldn't dare."

But Beckett shook her head. "Let's leave the "homework" for _home_, kay Castle?"

Castle pouted. "Kay."

Beckett smirked softly. "But I'll let you pull my pigtails."

Behind her, Castle's eyes crinkled with his adoring smile.

Beckett reached for the handle of the door. But Castle had another brilliant idea.

"Hey Kate..."

Beckett inhaled and exhaled to calm herself. "Castle, if I'm tardy, it goes on my personal record, so hurry the hell up and say what you wanna say." She spun around to meet him.

She expected him to be grinning cockily at the thought of his newest concoction, but instead he was just watching her with a stupidly lovesick look on his face.

She couldn't help but mirror his expression.

"What, baby?" She asked him again, only more gentler this time.

"If I come to school, will you let me hold your hand under the desk?"

Kate swelled with the amount of love this man was pouring out to her. Never had she been loved like this before. So clearly, so evidently and so beautifully.

The detective smiled a loving smile at her partner. "Yes. Every day."

He smiled a dashing smile at her and had just one more interruption. "Always", he said with so much sincerity, it made her heart burst.

She walked out the door, but not before nodding in agreement and leaving him the promise of her return tonight, and then tomorrow night, and perhaps every night.

He suddenly didn't mind having to live through the embarrassment of finding drool on his pillow tomorrow morning. He knew that tonight, again, he would sleep very well.

...

**A/N: So maybe it's a bit sloppy, I know and I do apologize. It's really just a jumbled mess of ideas and one-liners that I think of and apply to them. But it's also kinda sweet, right?... Any thoughts would be good here... pleeaaase? :D **


End file.
